Implementing Inclusive Education: A Commonwealth Guide to Implementing Article 24 of the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities

The right to education for all children is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and more recently in the Millennium Development Goals. However, in developing countries the proportion of disabled children attending school is estimated at between less than one per cent and five per cent. Now the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, which came into force in May 2008, requires the development of an inclusive education system for all. Inclusion in education is a process of enabling all children to learn and participate effectively within mainstream school systems, without segregation. It is about shifting the focus from altering disabled people to fit into society to transforming society, and the world, by changing attitudes, removing barriers and providing the right support. Implementing Inclusive Education shows how Commonwealth countries are attempting to undertake this transformative process, and will encourage all those charged with ensuring education for all to make certain that disabled children are fully included in all aspects of the education system. The book provides examples, both through illustrated case studies and on the accompanying DVDs, of how inclusive education systems for all children have been established in pockets throughout the Commonwealth. The message is clear: it can be done. The task is now to implement inclusive education worldwide.

Table of Contents:
Foreword 1. Introduction Adoption of the Convention The Long Road to Inclusive Education 2. Implementing the Convention What Are Governments Doing? 3. Changing Attitudes to Disability The Shift from Charity Thinking to Social and Human Rights Thinking The Development of Medical Model Thinking The Development of Social Model Thinking 4. Inclusive Education Segregation, Integration and Inclusion Integration or Inclusion? Community-based Rehabilitation Effective Inclusive Education The Costs of Inclusion Gender and Inclusion Inclusive Education for Disabled Indigenous People New Zealand: A Case Study Key Factors in Development of Inclusive Education 5. Developing National Policies Involving Disabled People's Organisations Involving the Parents of Disabled Children What Progress are States Making in Implementing Inclusive Education? 6. Inclusive Education at Provincial, Regional and District Level Inclusion at Regional and District Level Involving Disabled Children and Young People 7. Inclusive Education in the Classroom Accommodating Disabled Pupils Toolkit for Creating Inclusive Learning-Friendly Environments Index of Inclusive Education Getting School Buildings Right Sensory-impaired Children in Poorer Countries Children with Profound and/or Multiple Impairments Inclusion and the HIV/AIDS Pandemic Examples of Classroom and Individual Measures taken to Accommodate Students with Disabilities Making Reasonable Adjustments to Include Disabled Pupils Annex: Reasonable Adjustments in the Classroom - A Checklist 8. Conclusion Appendices 1. Useful Resources 2. The Long Road to Inclusive Education for Disabled Children Notes References Figures Boxes DVD 1 Shows Examples of Inclusive Education in Africa and India DVD 2 Contains Training Material and Examples of Inclusive Practice from the UK, Uganda and Canada

About the Author :
Richard Rieser is Director of Disability Equality in Education, a UK NGO that provides training, consultancy and resources to improve the position of disabled people in the education system.

Review :
'Clear and straightforward, this manual can help trainers organise their workshops in a logical and complete way.' - LEISA Magazine, volume 25, Issue 2, June 2009.